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 s it wrong of me to wish that the cold-blooded killer
played by Leslie Cheung would come up on top? That before he's done with his
killing spree, he gets the chance to take out all the cops that act like jerks,
including leading man Alex Fong? In the world of "Double Tap", where a
killer kills because he needs the rush, but cops act like schoolyard bullies
because they're just assholes, things aren't so clear-cut. And that's what makes
"Double Tap" such a great movie.
"Double Tap" is one of those really good Hong
Kong movies that remind me why I adore Hong Kong cinema so much. It combines
terrific and gritty action sequences with complex characters, and douses the
whole thing with a heavy dose of vibrancy that only the Chinese, it seems, are
capable of. Chi-Leung Law, who recently collaborated with star Leslie Cheung in
the unconventional horror film "Inner
Senses", also wrote the genre-busting "Viva
Erotica", also starring Cheung. Law's ability to convey complex emotion
within the confines of seemingly generic storylines makes him truly unique in
Hong Kong cinema.
In "Double Tap", Cheung is Rick, a gunsmith who
is forced to kill a rampaging gunman during a shooting tournament. Rick's main
competition in the tournament was Miu (Alex Fong), a Hong Kong cop who froze
when the gunman appeared, forcing Rick to do the shooting. Three years later,
Rick is no longer the man he was. He has turned into a cold-blooded assassin,
hiring out his skills not for money, but for the sheer thrill of killing. Rick's
life is now devoted to the extreme art of killing, rather the target be cops,
crooks, or his devoted girlfriend Colleen (Ruby Wong).
"Double Tap" is truly a rare gem. It combines
great acting by leads Cheung and Fong, and even a decent turn by perennial
background player Ruby Wong ("PTU"),
with thrilling gunplay. The movie actually consists of only two main action
sequences, and both pits Rick against the cops trying to arrest him. There are
killings in-between, but the two main sequences are what stand out. When all is
said and done, there is a sea of dead and dying cops, with Rick coolly walking
through them like knife through butter.
And yet, despite the intense action and bloodshed,
writer/director Law never allows the audience to forget that underneath the
steely exterior, Rick is still just human. He's a man unable to deny his own
demons, and thus must rely on the act of killing to regain his humanity. It's a
paradox to be sure. Rick's only remaining entanglement to "normalcy"
is the unrequited love of Colleen, although later in the film we start to
question Rick's cold approach to Colleen. Does Rick, under all the blood and
death, actually loves Colleen in return, or is he just using her as an excuse to
do more killing?
Alex Fong ("Lifeline")
straddles the line between asshole cop and devoted purveyor of justice with
uncanny ability. Unfortunately Fong's Miu have more complexity than most of his
fellow cops, many of which flash by in a sea of insignificant first names, if
they're lucky. Monica Chan ("Option
Zero") plays Fong's wife, a doctor whose relationship with Fong is,
unfortunately, less than interesting. Next to the chaos of Rick and Colleen's
relationship, Chan and Fong's marriage seems pedestrian by comparison.
"Double Tap" is a very entertaining movie. It
could be called action, because God knows there's plenty of that; I like to
think of it as intense drama. Also, it's films like "Tap" and "Inner
Senses" that convince me the world has lost a great talent in Leslie
Cheung. Is there anyone else who could have pulled off the complexity of Rick, a
psychotic mass murderer who nevertheless manages to make us feel sympathy for
him? The guy is completely out of his mind and a clear menace to society, and
yet -- and yet -- I wanted him to win. Is that wrong?
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